GE to Launch Synchrony Financial IPO As Early As Friday — Sources

Ted Mann and Telis Demos broke the news on Thursday that Synchrony Financial, the North American consumer-finance arm of General Electric Co., planned to launch its initial public offering as soon as Friday. Synchrony formally announced on Friday that it was offering 125 million shares at $23 to $26 each.

The story as it appeared on Dow Jones:
July 17, 2014 – 3:57 PM ET: GE to Launch Synchrony Financial IPO As Early As Friday — Sources

Synchrony Financial, the North American consumer-finance arm of General Electric Co. (GE), plans to launch its initial public offering as soon as Friday, according to people familiar with the deal, a critical step in GE Chief Executive Jeff Immelt’s drive to shrink GE’s financial operations.

The IPO could be the biggest debut by a U.S. company so far this year, topping the $2.6 billion offering by Ally Financial in April, some of the people said. GE has said it will sell a stake of about 15%-20% in the operation, which makes loans and provides financing for retailer-branded credit cards. Analysts have valued the business at about $20 billion.

The U.S. IPO market has already raised more money, and seen more deals, so far in 2014 than in any year since 2000, according to Dealogic. And Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., the Chinese e-commerce company, is plotting a U.S. listing that could exceed $20 billion in September, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

The IPO is a crucial element of Mr. Immelt’s strategy to lead the company away from its long reliance on financial profits, and back toward its roots as one of the country’s oldest and strongest industrial manufacturers that makes everything from jet engines to power turbines and locomotives.

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